Yes, it was a long-running (4 years now), full on hoax…a prank…a made up story.

I mean, seriously, did you really believe something could sit hidden from the public for hundreds of years without anyone finding out about “tenkara” before April 12, 2009? I never imagined that what started as an attempt at poking the fly-fishing industry with humor could go this far. And, I really never thought one of the big companies in the industry would fall for it and start making their own rods too…it is a joke people!

That “one fly” thing…yes, just a light-hearted prank too. Com’on, we all know we need to imitate a bug just perfectly and carry several dozen fly patterns with us to catch fish. All those books on entomology are there for a reason, I just wanted to see who in their right mind would try to use one fly pattern all the time.

And talking about flies, that reverse hackle thing (or “sakasa”)…simple, I tried imagining a fly that would look completely different from all those flies out there. Can’t believe some people actually went for that, I never expected the reverse hackle to become popular.

The cork on the handle of a telescopic rod…well, telescopic rods have been around for a long time, and so have fly rods. We just decided to combine the two and call it “tenkara”.

The 12ft length thing? Also a joke. We all know a 7ft rod is the best thing for a small stream.

Now, what about the name: “tenkara”? It actually really does mean “from heaven”, but is often used along with food stuff (as in food from heaven). Once I visited a restaurant called “tenkara” and thought it was a catchy name. Why else would no one from Japan know what you’re talking about when you mention “tenkara” to them?

Thank you Daniel for hiring me that day you pulled over to help a stranded VW Hippie on the side of the road. If it were not for my pink colored VW Bus breaking down I would never have been hired for this gig.

Now that my stint as the Director of Customer Service for this Tenkara USA has come to an end, I can go back to my normal day job, owner and proprietor of Crazy Clown Cotton Candy Confectionery, or what I romatically call 5Cs.

Can’t wait to go back to sticky fingers and checking out the hot chicks at places like Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk where you will often find my cotton candy stand during the hot summer months. Just look for the Hot Pink Cotton Candy Colored VW Bus out in the parking lot with the license plate VWHippy.

Thanks again Daniel for the work. Sure am glad this long ass stick he gave me called the U’Wanna was an effective way to catch fish because Daniel sure did not pay us that much. At least I was able to catch fish after fish with this fishing pole and sell fish on the side to make ends meet. Sure felt like I became one of those Tenkara Fisherman from the olden days that had to catch fish for a living. Yeh, Right! He made up that story too! Having to catch fish in the mountains of Japan to make a living. Now that is plum funny! In fact I caught so many damn fish I was able to upgrade my VW Bus with a new engine and some shag carpet so I can treat my ladies right after a hard days work selling my sugary goodness.

I can’t believe it! I am such a rube! To think I invested the past few years developing a fishing love for a joke! I blogged for goodness sake! That’s it! I am going to see if I can buy back my 8 wt and start chucking lead head wooly buggers!